Michigan

More problems arise for Goodrich Dam

GOODRICH, Michigan -- More damage to Goodrich's 100-year-old Mill Pond Dam has forced village officials to lower the water level of the pond for a state inspection Tuesday.

During a recent village inspection, Department of Public Works employees discovered what Street Administrator Pete Morey called "a blowout" on the east bank of the dam.

"That dam has been there for 100 years. It's old. It's like an old car -- the starter goes, the brakes get bad, the alternator goes. It's just one thing after another," he said.

During a meeting last week, Morey made the Village Council aware of the damage and upcoming inspection.

Councilwoman Patricia Wartella, who owns a home near the Mill Pond, said the dam should have been inspected and repaired during last year's construction on the Hegel Road Bridge.

Morey said an inspection was done and a crack was found on the west side of the dam. The DPW poured concrete to seal the crack, but damage to the east side of the dam was not present at that time.

"This is a whole new problem. Last year we had a soil-erosion problem on the west side and fixed it, but what's probably happening is that we still have a soil-erosion problem -- just on the other side," said Morey.

Still, Morey says this is an educated guess and he isn't certain because it's been too dangerous to do a regular inspection, which requires DPW employees to take a boat into the pond.

Instead, the village will drain the pond, and Tuesday a Department of Environmental Quality inspector will investigate and give the village recommendations for a solution.

Some residents fear the suggestion will include removing the dam and drying out the Mill Pond permanently. Council President Ed York said removing the dam is unlikely.

"I don't think we can remove it. If we removed it, there could become an even bigger problem," York said.

"What's going on is that we have a hundred-year-old dam that's falling apart and we don't know what's wrong. We need to come up with a fix that will be substantial."

Morey says his main concern is the safety of the people who live downstream and who face the most danger if the dam is not fixed quickly.

"When we get all our dam reports, it's all about safety of people downstream. We're talking life and limb. We have a school down there. ... I don't care whether those people on the Mill Pond have water, I have to protect those kids," Morey said.

"Unless we do something like they have for the Atlas Township dam, it'll only be a Band-Aid."

About three years ago, said Township Supervisor Paul Amman, the Genesee County Road Commission made major repairs to the Atlas Township Millpond dam, installing a spillway as a permanent solution to regulate the water levels.

For several years, residents who live on the Goodrich Mill Pond have expressed frustration about inconsistent water levels, algae and higher taxes.

Ida Saroli, who lives on the Mill Pond shore, says the pond is a highlight of Goodrich and she doesn't want to see it disappear.

"What they're (the council members) doing right now is crucial to fixing the dam. There is a lot of frustration about it, but the key thing is that a decision needs to be made," she said.